I posted this question but the main answer is clearly wrong. I explained it, I added it huge in my question, but people continue to upvote this wrong answer. I suppose they just read the title, beacause it very clear in the question...

As the question author, is there a way to mark this question wrong and never accepted ?

@TZHX: Not applicable as you don't know the correct way (otherwise you wouldn't have asked the question in the first place). Also, answers should not be abused for comments.
– BergiJun 2 '15 at 15:00

64

It could be that people are up-voting it because that answer helped them fix that problem. The tool-tip on the up arrow only says "This answer is useful" not "This answer fixes the OP's problem".
– BSMPJun 2 '15 at 15:10

13

It isn't very clear why you want SO users to stop voting, they are good answers that are pretty likely to be relevant to future visitors that have a similar problem. That they don't solve your specific problem is self-inflicted, you did not prepare the question well. Review the Help Center "How to Ask" section with special attention to this section.
– Hans PassantJun 2 '15 at 15:34

7

Try to be less panicky and you'll get a better reaction. Also, although in this case you are correct, you've basically taken on the argument of "this person is wrong, and so are all the people who agree with him, but I AM RIGHT DAMMIT!" Well, the voting system is there to express majority opinion so, if you're going to go against majority opinion, perhaps be a little less shrill and a little more humble about it.
– Lightness Races in OrbitJun 2 '15 at 19:32

1

An upvote doesnt mean "[I think] this is the right answer to the question" it means, "this answer is useful"
– Ňɏssa PøngjǣrdenlarpJun 2 '15 at 23:06

2

There are 8 net upvotes at the moment. There's nothing 'massive' about that.
– Marquis of LorneJun 3 '15 at 7:51

@EJP : the answer I talked about was finally removed.
– CaduchonJun 3 '15 at 7:52

2

@HansPassant: Actually, I don't want users stop voting, of course. I wanted to be able to flag the answer as a "wrong answer according to the question, be aware if you still upvote".
– CaduchonJun 3 '15 at 7:56

1

@LightnessRacesinOrbit: Actually, your right (dammit !). But it's a little bit frustrating to see people voting without according enough time to note it's not the reached answer.
– CaduchonJun 3 '15 at 7:59

If the upvoted answer is incorrect or flawed in some way, you're always free to downvote it. If you feel strongly that the answer is so bad that people should be warned about it, leave a comment beneath the answer explaining the flaw.

Try to keep in mind that some of the upvotes you're seeing are likely from people working on related problems. While the answer may not be a great fit for your specific instance, it may have helped them solve their related problem.

If you find that having a highly upvoted answer that doesn't solve your specific problem seems to be discouraging new, possibly more helpful, answers you can use a bounty to gain attention and fresh answers.

"likely from people working on related problems" - Just to nitpick, that's unlikely since the question is only 5 hours old.
– MysticialJun 2 '15 at 15:49

15

@Mysticial I answered in a more general way for future readers with related problems.
– apaulJun 2 '15 at 15:51

2

@Mysticial Why unlikely? I, for one, often set my search parameters to start with the newest questions (or at least in the last year) so I get the most current answer. So I see under 10 hours old posts often enough.
– LinkBerestJun 4 '15 at 1:34

Just to support the correctness of this answer I downvoted it.
– Jeremy AndersonJun 5 '15 at 4:49

I agree that it's frustrating. It distracts from getting the good answer you need.

At the moment I think it's appropriate to do one or more of the items listed by R Sahu, but also to note, in comments, politely and succinctly, that the answer doesn't answer your question to your satisfaction, and why. I wouldn't advocate saying "don't vote for it", just stick to facts: "this doesn't fully answer the question because...."

Sometimes, downvoting does not make an impact if it goes from 48 upvotes to 47.

What I do is I comment on the wrong answer by making it clear that the answer is wrong. Personally, I read the comments I find on answers that I think might be useful (before validation). More than once, I've seen people linking to a better answer. It allowed me, as I was not the OP, to downvote the answer (after validation) and upvote the right answer to help the right solution be the first one.

Then, I create a new answer with the correct solution when I have one. I also indicate that it is based on the answer provided by X and explain why I provided a better answer (if/when it makes sense to give credit).

You have to note that sometimes a wrong answer might be valid or useful to someone else. I only use that technique when the answer is misleading and does not make any sense (e.g. wrong result).